


Ace

by Hotalando



Category: One Piece
Genre: Adulthood, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Brotherhood, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Slice of Life
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-06-11
Updated: 2018-06-19
Packaged: 2019-05-21 04:30:51
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 1,448
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14908370
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Hotalando/pseuds/Hotalando
Summary: Brotherhood could have its twerks but Ace wouldn't trade those two for anything, not even for a life with his real family. Still—how will he seek true happiness without guidance? (Short: mushy ASL Slice of Life)





	1. Ace, the cat owner

## ch.1: Ace, the cat owner

A quarter to eight and Sabo steps out of his room in a haste, a day bursting from classes, meetings and other plans ahead of him and he needs every little second of it, if he wanted to master it all. 

He turns to lock the bedroom door behind him—yes, it is so fucking necessary to do that—and sets one foot towards the kitchen but halts immediately when something in his head reminds him to watch the floors carefully. 

How necessary that is, he can’t even spare enough spit to explain. 

“Ace!” Sabo calls, somewhere between agitation and not really having time for any of this shit, he feels so close to surrendering. “Ace!

One of your cats threw up on the floor!”

“Which one?” it finally sounds from around the corner probably directly from the kitchen floor.

“What… How should I know? Just get rid of it _soon_!” Careful to not get his socks dirty, Sabo tiptoes around the spots and finally enters the kitchen. “Take care of the problem, would ya?” he adds, not paying much attention to his brother lying on the tiled floor under three cats.

“You always make it sound like I could foresee when they throw up. That’s not how it works.” The dark-haired man on the floor brushes over his face with his palm and rests it on the tigered cat on his chest afterwards. “I’m not a cat psychic, you know.”

“If you were, we could at least earn money from the cats,” Sabo imagines and tries the idea in his head—not really an elegant profession—while fixing himself a tumbler of coffee. “You know that that’s not my point. If you had like five cats less, you had better control over the situation.”

Ace stares at him in disbelief. “And which ones would I give away? I don’t think that’s the solution to the problem.”

“I think it is. Less cats, less trouble. Less vomit everywhere, less Luffy feeding junk to them–”

“See, that’s the problem! If he’d stop that, they would stop throwing up!”

Sabo rolls his eyes at his brother. “I love you man but this is getting out of hand. I don’t mean to say that you’re awful with cats but honestly—seven? That’s too much.” Why he and Luffy agreed to the cats in the first place, he doesn’t remember anymore. Only that one day, there were seven cats in his kitchen.

The other man stays quiet, a sad but contemplating silence that only a little makes Sabo regret his words. But it is for the better, they rarely have any space for that many cats, no matter how kind and clean and well-behaved they actually are—they have natural side effects that they can’t be blamed for, i.e. the throwing up.

“We talk when I get back—you have hopefully called that employer by then.” Sabo nudges his brother’s side with a foot while passing him by and leaves. 

Alone the man with the seven cats sprawled all over him by now, these creatures he can’t push away. Ever since he has sat down on the floor to brush three of them, they didn’t leave his side and so the lazy butt he is, he laid down for a cuddle. They are so kind to him, at least they don’t tell him to call the employer or send applications to the coffee shops around their neighbourhood. At least they don’t question him why he decided to drop out of community college. 

They just sit there with him and have a lazy day. 

How could he push away someone who loves him despite his flaws? How could he give away who brushes his leg whenever he feels like the worst dimwit in the solar system? How could he let go of those who only want his affections and attention—and food and a clean litter box and a bed—without any strings attached?

Well, he couldn’t. He can’t. But he probably should.

And so he will.


	2. Ace, the housebrother

## ch.2: Ace, the housebrother

When the apartment door finally falls shut behind him—the entire world left outside—Sabo has only a second to enjoy it. The day—how it seeps from his veins and drains the last bit of motivation and sanity from him—is finally coming to an end after fourteen hours with no breaks. 

But brotherhood never takes a break either and so he enters a conflict only three steps into the apartment. Their home is too tiny for all three of their egos.

“Whaddya mean he’s gone? He can’t just pack his stuff and leave with his buds, he’s a cat.“

The taller, almost identical looking dark-haired man grimaces weakly, “Sharp thinking.”

“What’s going on?“ Sabo frowns and barely prevents a yawn. He’s too tired and hungry for solving conflicts—let alone pay attention to anything but the food cooking in the pots on the stove—and yet he senses that something is very, very off.

“Mr. Slugpants is gone.” Luffy states in a dramatic fashion. “And Ace doesn’t tell me where he is.”

“Well, not here,” the oldest of them repeats as he has been saying it tens of times over the past hour.

“I know that! I looked for him everywhere and I can’t find any of them. Where the hell are they?”

“The cats are gone?” Sabo blinks, now wider awake than at any other time of the day. Indeed, he can’t spot the typical pile of cats snuggling next to Ace’s feet and usually Luffy would be playing with the rest in his room while waiting for dinner.

“If you can’t see any of them, I suppose they’re gone.” Is all that Ace says, indicating very clearly that he doesn’t like to talk right now. “Dinner’s ready,” he adds and leaves for his room without taking his share along.

Perplex the remaining brothers stare at each other for explanations of the other man’s behaviour but none of them seem to understand. Is the loss of the cats such a grave change that it influences his mood to this extent? Were the cats that important to him?

After all, Sabo asked him to get rid of them several times. Is it his fault? To compensate the anger at himself rising up, he bangs his head against the doorframe. “I told him we’d talk about it…” 

“So you told him to get rid of ‘em? Well, thanks.” Luffy doesn’t even try to mask his disappointment and irritation at his older brother’s insensitive act. “You’re not home to deal with his moods and they were getting better with the cats around.”

“I didn’t tell him to get rid of them all! I just said ‘five cats less would be better‘,“ Sabo defends himself but knows very well that all complaints directed at him are justified. 

Luffy’s features turn blank but for the disbelief of Sabo’s misjudgement of their brother’s character. “Really? It never came to you that he wouldn’t separate them from each other ‘cause they’re a family to him?”

Sabo rubs the back of his neck in shame, “He might’ve mentioned something like that once… I don’t know. Look– I’m sorry. I got taken away by the shitload of work I have to do and then I come home to two brothers who just sit about on their asses doing nothing! Am I the only one making sure we earn a living?”

“Are you fucking for real? Ace is cleaning, he’s cooking for us, he does basically everything and I feel even bad for only doing the dishes. If he had a job, you’d come home to no food and a dirty hole for a home! I can’t believe you,” Luffy pants out the last sentence, he’s overdone his rant a little. But whenever Ace’s efforts are underestimated, he gets passionate to defend his brother—even from their very own brother.

“I… I didn’t...” Sabo swallows roughly and is at loss for words for once. He knows what Ace does to keep their apartment a place worth living at, and he wouldn’t trade for anything because all the household duties aren’t his type of thing at all. Neither Luffy’s but that boy has always enjoyed helping out. 

“They weren’t just Ace’s cats. I liked having them around, too. And that I have no idea where he brought them to sucks,” Luffy sighs and changes the mood of the situation a little. 

Two doors down the corridor Ace can still hear their every word, while his mind replays the events of the day that included more than just the farewell of the cats.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Since I didn't expect to get any feedback at all, I thank any of you who liked, subscribed, read and bookmarked with a new chapter. Next one follows once I've written another one. Happy reading!

**Author's Note:**

> Hey ho! New story up and I'm not quite sure where this is heading but I enjoy writing this whenever I'm down. Three chapters are done already, those three will be a little darker, more emotional but after the forth chapter there'll be more fun.  
> Also some minor relationships will be included (if you know my other stories, you might guess) and a kind of minor death will happen. Mostly rated Teen and Up Audiences for language.


End file.
